The Eye of the Storm
by E350
Summary: After an absence of nearly twenty years, Sadie's father has returned to Beach City - as a government agent on the trail of a gem object. his is bad news for the Crystal Gems and worse news for Barb, but for Sadie it's a chance to find out who her dad really is. She might be better off not knowing. Some dark themes. Past Barb/OC, hints at Larsadie, Connverse and Amedot.
1. Prologue

First I should apoligise. I have neglected this here account for the last few months, and I shan't allow that to happen again. All the stuff I put on Ao3 and deviantart will be uploaded post haste, and I might see about getting some FFN only oneshots up or something.

In any case, this is a plot bunny that I just had to feed. Enjoy!

* * *

 **Prologue**

His name was Clancy and he worked for the government.

Officially, he was a clerk in Washington, doing desk work for the Office of Strategic Services. He was an ordinary, somewhat nebbish looking man with a trim moustache, and he wore a nondescript black suit (as was OSS standard). He looked like a pencil-pusher and most dismissed him quickly. This worked well for him, as in actuality he was a secret agent.

Clancy worked at the Extraterrestrial Desk, an office that _officially_ didn't exist and _unofficially_ was based out of a broom cupboard between Temporal Affairs and the MK-MEGA guys. The job sounded exciting but was for the most part very boring, usually requiring agents to drive to empty patches of desert to verify a crashed UFO claim which enviably ended up being either a weather balloon or a crashed air force rocket. A few times they had gotten actual UFO alerts, but they were either far away in Korea or already gone by the time any agents could be sent out.

It was a source of much amusement within the OSS that almost everyone at the Extraterrestrial Desk had never actually seen an alien.

 _Almost._

When he had been a boy in rural Appalachia, Clancy had been avidly interested in UFOs. He had learned everything there was to know about the 1947 Corona UFO Incident (at least everything that wasn't classified) and was making his own star charts at fifteen. When he moved to Delmarva for college, he had been delighted to learn that there were apparently 'strange magical women' living in a town not far from him, and had immediately investigated.

But that was nearly twenty years ago now. Clancy didn't like to think about it.

Unfortunately, it had just come up in conversation.

"Sir, I'd really rather not," he said to his boss as they sat in the stuffy, warm office.

"Too bad, Clancy," said the Department Head gruffly, "You're the only person we have with any experience in this matter."

"I promised myself I'd never go back to Beach City," replied Clancy.

"Then _unpromise_ yourself _,_ " grumbled the Head, "Because this one comes down from on high?"

"How on high?"

"The President's office."

The Head reached into his drawer and pulled out a file.

"There is an object being kept in Beach City," he said, "It is codenamed..."

" _PHILOSOPHER_ , sir," interrupted Clancy, "I'm aware of it. My first job with the OSS was to hide it."

"Well ain't you special?" grunted the Head, "Well, the President doesn't want it hidden anymore. We've had several UFOs detected over the country in the last year and it's got the White House running around like a pack of headless chickens. They want that object for research."

"What do they want to do with it?" asked Clancy.

"They want to understand it, son," replied the Head.

"So they can make weapons from it?" demanded Clancy, "They do know that nobody knows what it _does_ , right?"

"Hence the word ' _research_ '," said the Head, "Clancy, I know you've got a personal problem with this, but you're not getting out of this. You're going to Beach City if I have to drag you there myself."

Clancy sighed.

"In and out, right?" he asked, "I just pick it up and drive straight back?"

"That's the plan," nodded the Head.

Clancy sighed again and stood up.

"Better start driving, then," he said, "Do I have a partner?"

"You're picking up a artefact, not taking on the mob," snapped the Head, "One agent is enough."

Clancy nodded.

"I'll be right back, sir," he said.

The Head nodded back.

"Best of luck," he said, " _Agent Miller_."

* * *

I'm sure this will be a straight-forward day-trip where nothing will go wrong.


	2. Chapter One

If this seems quick, it's because I wrote the prologue yesterday. Anyway, let's get this show on the road!

* * *

 **Chapter One**

It was a beautiful Sunday morning in Beach City. The sky was a beautiful sapphire colour, dotted with the occasional fluffy white cloud, and a calm, cool breeze drifted along the boardwalk. It had just past eight, and most people were sleeping in.

Most people were not Mr. Fryman. He had opened at six every day for years, no exceptions, no discussions. To his credit, he only rostered one of his children to work Sundays, and they were allowed to sleep in until seven. Peedee was on shift this fine morning - which was always good for productivity. He was standing at the kiosk talking to the first customers of the day.

"...sometimes I think about quitting like you did, but in a way I find this job fulfilling," said Peedee.

"Yeah, but you've got your dad and Ronaldo here," shrugged Sadie, "After Lars got abducted, there just wasn't anything keeping me there, you know?"

"Yeah, I get it."

"Me too," nodded Steven, even though he didn't.

"Order up!" Fryman called from the back.

Peedee disappeared for a moment, returning with the food.

"One regular fries and one box of fry bits," he said, "That'll be $3.50."

Steven reached into his pocket.

"Oh, I can get this one," said Sadie, grabbing her wallet.

"Are you sure?" asked Steven, "You don't have a job anymore."

"Neither do you," said Sadie.

"Point taken."

Sadie was about to hand Peedee the money when she was suddenly knocked aside by a tall man.

"Excuse me, can you point me to the U-Stor? They've moved it since I was last..."

"Hey!" snapped Sadie, "Back of the line! We're paying here."

"This is government business, ma'am, I won't be a min..."

He turned around and trailed off.

Steven took in the interloper. He was tall and skinny, with black hair and a trim moustache. He wore a black suit and tie, and looked like a perfectly normal, indistinct man. Yet Sadie was looking at him as though she'd seen a ghost, and the man seemed just as surprised to see Sadie. Steven couldn't help but think that he looked decidedly apprehensive.

" _Dad?_ " breathed Sadie.

"Sadie?" the man replied, "I...geez, sorry, I wouldn't have pushed in if I'd known it was you..."

"But you would have shoved anyone else," said Peedee dryly.

"You're Sadie's dad?" asked Steven.

"Yeah," replied the man, "Clancy Miller. I'm...I'm her dad."

"Are you a secret agent?" said Steven, awed.

"I...I'm a government worker, kid, I just push papers," shrugged Clancy, "Look, I don't mean to interrupt, I just need help finding the U-Stor and..."

"It's a few blocks away," replied Peedee, "I'll write the directions."

He walked off to find a piece of paper, leaving the three alone.

"...well, this is a bit awkward," said Clancy, chuckling nervously.

"Yeah," Sadie nodded back, "I mean, it's been...what, eight years?"

"I think that's right," nodded Clancy, "You were staying at my apartment for the week. I remember because the copier caught fire in the office..."

There was a long and uncomfortable silence.

"So..." said Clancy, scratching the back of his head, "How's your mother."

"Good, good," replied Sadie, "Still running the post office."

"She ever talk about me?"

"I'm pretty sure you're still dead to her," replied Sadie, "Sorry."

"No, it's fine, it's fine," said Clancy, "So, uh, who's the kid? Barb get together with someone new?"

"Oh, _geez_ , no, we're not related," replied Sadie quickly.

"My name's Steven!" said Steven, offering a hand, "Steven Universe!"

"Universe?" quizzed Clancy, "As in Greg Universe? I thought he was dating the..."

"Here you go."

Peedee was back at the kiosk, holding out a scrap of paper. Clancy quickly grabbed it, mumbling his thanks.

"Well, I-I'd better go," he said quickly, "They'll want me back in Washington as soon as possible. I-ah-good seeing you!"

"Yeah, you too!" nodded Sadie.

Clancy shot her a nervous smile and ran off down the boardwalk, quickly ducking down an alley and vanishing from view.

"See you next time, I guess," sighed Sadie.

"Man, what a jerk," grunted Peedee.

"Nah, he's not a jerk," replied Sadie, "He's just bad with people skills."

"Are you okay, Sadie?" asked Steven.

Sadie swallowed and nodded.

"Yeah," she said, "I'm good. Let's...let's just forget about it, okay?"

She handed Peedee the money for the food.

"But Sadie, I..."

Sadie put a hand on Steven's shoulder.

"Steven, it's alright," she said, "I'd just rather not think about it, okay?"

Steven nodded.

"Okay," he said.

They walked off down the boardwalk, heading towards Steven's house.

* * *

"What do you mean it's _gone?_ " spluttered Clancy.

The U-Stor manager shrugged.

"I'm sorry, Mac," he said, "We cleared out a lot of the excess stuff in the move. Needed the space for Greg Universe's stuff."

"But I made an arrangement!" said Clancy, "The old manager told me it would be kept in a secure safe!"

"What, Walter?" asked the manager.

"Yeah, Walter," nodded Clancy, "Where is he?"

"He's dead," replied the manager, "Has been for six years."

" _Dead?!_ " exclaimed Clancy, "What do you mean, dead? What killed him?"

"A heart attack, Mac; he was ninety-four years old," replied the manager, "Look, if it's supposed to be secured then we probably handed it over to the Mayor's office. Check public records, there'll be a note of it."

"So where do I check those?" asked Clancy.

"Public library," replied the manager.

"Well then, that's where I'm going," said Clancy.

"Not until twelve you're not," said the manager, "It's Sunday, they don't open their doors until midday."

Clancy cursed.

"I was hoping to be out of town by then," he growled, "Is there any way to speed this up?"

"You're working to small-town time, mister," shrugged the manager, "Just be grateful that anything's open on Sunday at all."

"I know what _small-town time_ is," grunted Clancy, "I lived in one for the first eighteen years of my life!"

He sighed.

"Can you at least tell me if there's somewhere to get breakfast?" he asked.

"Fish Pizza," replied the manager, "That's probably the best place. Speaking of breakfast, you mind clearing off? I've got a burrito sitting in the microwave with my name on it."

Clancy muttered to himself as he walked away from the U-Stor.

"Stranded in Beach City for the morning," he grumbled, "I told them we should have moved it to Washington in the first place, but _nooooo_ , they need that storage space for those guys that stare at goats. Darn it."

He took a deep breath.

"Well, as long as I don't run into Barb, it should be fine," he said, "Just keep your cool, Clancy, it's not like you're here overnight."

He walked away, heading back towards the boardwalk.

Unfortunately for Agent Clancy Miller, fate was already conspiring against him...


	3. Chapter Two

Sorry this took so long - FFN was disagreeing with me and wouldn't let me upload documents.

* * *

 **Chapter Two**

The breakfast rush had about finished at Fish Stew Pizza, but it was still before ten, so the breakfast menu was still available. Ronaldo Fryman was sitting at the back of the restaurant with his laptop, making use of the free Wi-Fi as he always did. Steven, Connie and Sadie had taken the second table, but the one closest to the window remained unoccupied.

Connie tapped her pencil on the table.

"Maybe you could do something about a school," she said, "But all the staff are monsters that feed on the youth and optimism of the students."

"Yeah, that's good," nodded Sadie, "It's like a metaphor for how public school drains your soul! I mean, it might be a _bit_ on the nose, but write it down anyway."

Connie scribbled down the idea.

The door swung open, and they instinctively glanced at the door.

Clancy looked back at them. He swallowed and adjusted his collar.

"Uh...well, speak...speak of the devil," he stammered.

"Hi Mr. Miller!" called Steven, "Come sit with us!"

"Steven, I don't think..." began Sadie.

"I...I don't want to impose myself..." said Clancy.

"But this is a good chance for you to catch up!" replied Steven, "Don't you want to at least try that?"

Sadie and Clancy looked at each other.

"Yeah, okay," she said, "Why not, huh?"

"Well...I can sit at that other table," said Clancy nervously, "But...yeah, why not?"

He sat down next to Sadie, his posture somewhat stiff as he grabbed the menu. As he did so, Kiki walked up to them, clipboard out.

"You guys decided what you want to...oh, who's this?" she asked.

"Uh, Clancy Miller," replied Clancy, "I work for the government."

"He's my dad, Kiki," explained Sadie, "We're catching up."

"Oh, that sounds great!" nodded Kiki, "I'll give him a little more time to read the menu, alright?"

Sadie nodded and Kiki walked away.

"So, uh, who's you're other friend?" asked Clancy.

"Connie Maheswaran, Mr. Miller," replied Connie, "Steven told me about you this morning. You're some kind of secret agent?"

"Nothing that interesting," replied Clancy, "I just push papers."

He and Sadie glanced at each other again but didn't speak. A few awkward moments of silence passed.

"...so," said Clancy, "You're Greg's kid. Is he still at the car wash?"

"Yep," nodded Steven, "He owns it now."

"Good, good," said Clancy, "So did he get married or are your parents just living together or..."

"My mom's gone, Mr. Miller," replied Steven.

Clancy swore under his breath and slapped his forehead.

"Sorry, I-I _assumed_ , and..."

"It's okay," reassured Steven, "You didn't know."

Clancy swallowed. There was another very awkward silence.

"So...uh...what is it you do, Sadie?"

"I'm in a band," replied Sadie.

"A-A band?" said Clancy, surprised, "Really?"

"Yep!" exclaimed Connie, "Sadie Killer and the Suspects!"

"You're the _frontman?_ " spluttered Clancy.

"Yeah," nodded Sadie, "I mean, it doesn't pay anything, but I was just..."

"No, no, don't explain yourself, that...that's good!" replied Clancy, "That's excellent. Y-you-you must have your mother's voice, then!"

"...I've never heard mom sing, dad," said Sadie, tilting her head.

For a few seconds, Clancy froze. He quickly shook his head and recovered.

"Well, uh, sh-she used to," he said, "It's been a long time since I've seen her, y'know. I-I mean, last time we talked was through a solicitor and-and I..."

He dabbed his forehead with a napkin.

"I'm-I'm sorry, I...uh...how's the band treating you then? Is it all good?" he asked nervously.

Sadie stared back at him. There was a moment of dead silence.

"Am I really that scary to you?" asked Sadie.

"Sadie, wh-what..."

"I've seen you _three times_ in my whole life," replied Sadie, "And I spent most of those times with a babysitter because you were 'busy at work'. You never call, you _barely_ write...you can't even finish a single sentence without stammering!"

"Sadie..."

"I always thought you hated me!" continued Sadie, "But that's not it, is it? You're just... _scared_ of me."

"I don't...I don't understand..."

"All I want," said Sadie, "Is one conversation where it doesn't feel like you'd rather be literally anywhere else. Where I don't feel like I'm some mistake you're running away from!"

Clancy bit his lip and sighed.

"Sadie," he said, "I was never running away from you."

"Then what are you so afraid of?" demanded Sadie.

Clancy took a deep breath.

"If I told you," he said, "It..."

" _You._ "

Clancy turned around. Barb Miller stood in the door - her expression was dark and her fists were clenched. All eyes fell on her - Kiki, who was emerging from behind the counter, involuntarily shivered.

Clancy stood up, straightening his tie. His whole demeanour seemed to change.

"Hello Barbara," he said coldly, "I was just leaving."

"Clancy Miller," growled Barb, as if she was describing a particularly venomous spider, "I thought you promised never to come back to Beach City."

"I did," replied Clancy, "And I would have kept that promise. Unfortunately for me, the Office sent me back. I'll be out of your hair by midday."

He began to walk to the door. Barb grabbed his arm before he could leave.

"And what," she demanded, "Did they send you to get?"

Clancy narrowed his eyes.

"I'm sorry," he growled, "But that is _classified._ "

"Clancy, if you..." Barb spat.

" _Classified,_ " repeated Clancy.

Barb narrowed her eyes.

"What were you doing with Sadie?" she demanded.

"Can't I talk to my daughter?" replied Clancy.

"She isn't your daughter," snarled Barb, "And if you do anything to hurt her - _anything at all_ \- you're gonna _sorely_ regret it. You understand, Clancy?"

"Is that a threat?" asked Clancy.

"It's a _fact_ ," replied Barb.

They stared each other down for some time.

"Very well," he said, "I'll stay away. You have my word."

"Your word is worthless," replied Barb, but she let go of his arm anyway.

Clancy nodded curtly and walked out of the restaurant. There was a long silence after he left - you could have heard a pin drop.

Barb sighed and forced a smile onto her face, walking over to Kiki.

"Well, could've done without _that_ this morning," she said, reaching into her bag, "Anyway, I've got a package for Kofi in here; you okay to sign it?"

Kiki swallowed and nodded, shakily taking out her pen. Barb handed her the slip of paper and turned to Steven's table.

"Sadie!" she said, "I am so sorry you had to see...Sadie?"

She turned again, just in time to see Sadie run out the door.

"Oh no," she sighed.

"Ms. Miller?" asked Connie, "Are you alright?"

"Clancy and I had a _very_ bad break up," replied Barb, "I guess things got heated."

"We'll go see if she's okay," said Steven.

"Thanks, kid, that'd be great," nodded Barb, "I'm probably the last person she wants to see right now."

Steven and Connie got up, heading out the door.

"Sorry you all had to see that," Barb said loudly, addressing everybody left in the restaurant.

Ronaldo took off his headphones and looked around in confusion.

"Wait, what did I miss?" he asked.

* * *

Clancy sighed as he stood outside the library. It was still a few hours until it opened, and there was very little to do in Beach City that didn't risk running into Barb again. He supposed he'd just have to wait.

He heard someone behind him and turned around.

"I figured I'd see you at some point," he said, "I mean, you probably foresaw me coming, right?"

"Clancy," nodded Garnet.

Clancy sighed.

"I know you're probably gonna tell me something, but can it wait? I've had a really bad morning."

"I know what you're here for," said Garnet.

"Of course you do," nodded Clancy, "And I guess you want me to leave it here? Because, I dunno, it's dangerous for the Feds to have it or..."

"No," replied Garnet, "I'm asking you to leave it here for Barb...and for Sadie."

Clancy shook his head.

"I have my orders, Garnet," he said.

Garnet looked him in the eye, and he saw himself reflected in the visor. His stomach churned.

"I... _I have my orders_ ," he repeated, as much to himself as to Garnet.

Garnet said nothing, turning to walk away.

"I'll keep Sadie out of it, alright?" he called.

Garnet turned her head to look back at him.

"No," she said, "You won't."

She walked away.

* * *

AN: And so the _intrigue_ begins. Or what passes for intrigue around here, anyway.


	4. Chapter Three

The plot thickens.

* * *

 **Chapter Three**

Sadie lay in the grass on the side of the hill, gazing up at the sky. The fluffy white clouds wafted peacefully overhead. Right now, she wished she could fly among them, soaring far away from Beach City and her parents. Heck, maybe she should ask Steven if she could go to Lars' ship until everything blew over.

She couldn't really blame her mother, though. Her father had left her to raise a child on her own - and from what little she'd been told, their divorce had been far from amicable. Even so, she couldn't help but feel a twinge of embarrassment about the whole affair.

"Sadie? Are you up there?"

Sadie sat up. Steven and Connie were making their way up the hill.

"Yeah," she replied wearily, "I'm here."

The two walked over and sat down next to her.

"I knew they didn't like each other," said Sadie, "But I never expected..."

She shook her head.

"I've never seen Mom that mad at anyone!" she continued, "Ever! I mean, even that time Mayor Dewey crashed into her car, and she was _really_ mad when that happened!"

She lay back down again.

"What did he do to make her hate him that much?" she sighed.

"Why don't you ask your mom?" asked Connie.

"After _that?_ " replied Sadie, "No, she's not gonna tell me."

"Can't hurt to ask anyway, right?" asked Steven, "I mean, whenever I ask Dad about his past he tells me what happened. He even throws in a song!"

Sadie chuckled.

"My mom isn't your dad, Steven," she said, "But thanks anyway."

There was a brief silence.

"Well, at least he'll be gone soon," declared Sadie, "He's leaving by midday, right?"

* * *

"What do you mean it's not open?!" spluttered Clancy.

The librarian at the front desk shrugged.

"The Public Records desk is run by the Mayor's office," she replied, "And they have the weekend off. You'll need to come back tomorrow at nine."

"Look," said Clancy, taking out his wallet and showing her his ID card, "I am an agent of the Office of Strategic Services on an important mission. I need - _need -_ access to these records. Can you waive the security requirement and..."

"Sorry," replied the librarian, "I really can't help you."

"It's all on computers, right?" said Clancy, putting his wallet down on the table, "Can you log me in?"

"I don't have the password," said the librarian, "You need to talk to Michael, and he's in Charm City for the weekend."

"I...can't you just..."

Clancy ran his hand across his face.

"Fine," he sighed, "Is...is the motel on the way to Ocean Town still open?"

"Should be," replied the Librarian, "Should I call ahead and tell them you're coming."

"Will they be busy?"

"No."

"Then I'll just make the reservation when I get there," replied Clancy, "Ah...thanks anyway, ma'am. Goodbye."

He walked briskly out the door. The librarian turned back to her computer - a few moments later, an object on the desk caught her eye.

"Wait, he forgot his wallet," she said to herself.

She spun her chair around and glanced at his ID card.

"Agent Clancy Miller," she read, "Might be related to Barb or something. Must remember to drop it round after work..."

* * *

"I still feel pretty bad for Sadie," said Connie, as she and Steven walked up the steps of to the beach house, "Seeing your parents argue like that in public..."

"She'll be fine," replied Steven, "Sadie's pretty tough."

They walked into the house. Lion was sleeping in front of the warp pad, while Amethyst and Peridot sat on the couch, watching a video on the latter's tablet.

"This 'game' is of such poor quality," said Peridot, "Why would these people submit themselves to it?"

"Because it's funny when they freak out," shrugged Amethyst.

"Hey Amethyst! Hey Peridot!" said Steven, waving.

"'Sup Steven, Connie," replied Amethyst.

Peridot nodded at them.

"Where's Garnet and Pearl?" asked Connie.

"Beats me," shrugged Amethyst, "They've been acting weird all day. Warped off to 'talk privately' 'bout twenty minutes ago."

"They didn't bring you with them?" said Steven.

"Nah," replied Amethyst, "Who cares? They wanna go off and fuse in an alley somewhere, that's their business."

"I...don't think that's what they're doing," said Connie.

"Yeah, I guess," nodded Amethyst, "Maybe it's old war stuff."

She shrugged.

"Ain't our problem," she declared, "Who's up for video games?"

Steven and Connie grinned and raised their hands. Peridot hesitantly followed.

"As long as it's not that...'Marzio Party' game," she grumbled, "That game is a complete waste of time..."

"Only because you're bad at it," chuckled Amethyst.

* * *

Sadie walked in the door of her house and slumped down at the kitchen table. She sighed - it had been a long day.

She sat still for a while, staring at the clock.

"I need to vent," she decided.

She got up and walked down into her bedroom. Before long, she had returned with her tablet, which she set up on the table in front of her. She opened the camera app and set it to record.

"Hey Lars," she said, "Just sending you an update from good ol' Beach City. Everything's...mostly normal."

She rubbed her temples, thinking of how to phrase her next sentence.

"My dad came back," she explained, "That was pretty unexpected. And it turns out he and Mom still hate each other - I mean, _really_ hate each other."

She chuckled humourlessly.

"I mean, I shouldn't complain," she said, "I mean, you're trapped in space running from an evil empire and I'm upset because my parents yelled at each other. You gotta have perspective, right?"

She sighed.

"But it's weird, Lars, it's really weird," she said, "Mom always told me Dad was afraid of people, but he was fine talking to her - heck, he was fine talking to Steven! So why is he afraid of me?"

She shook her head.

"Well, thanks for listening," she said, "Hope you get home soon; I really miss you. I just..."

She rapped her fingers on the table.

"...well, goodbye," she finished.

She stopped the recording and sat back.

"What a day," she sighed.

There was a sudden knock on the door, and she almost fell off the chair. Shaking her head, she got up and answered.

"Yeah?"

The local librarian held out a wallet.

"Does Clancy Miller live here?" she asked, "He left his wallet at the library."

"Uh, no, but he's my dad," replied Sadie.

"Oh, good," said the librarian, "Can you make sure this gets to him?"

"Sure," nodded Sadie, "I _think_ I remember his address, and if not, mom probably has it, right?"

"I could let him know it's here when he comes by tomorrow," offered the librarian.

"Wait, tomorrow?" quizzed Sadie, "I thought he was leaving this afternoon?"

"The records desk is closed on Sunday, I told him to come back in the morning," replied the librarian.

"Oh," said Sadie flatly, "Great."

She took Clancy's wallet.

"I'll make sure he gets it," she said.

"Great, thank you," replied the librarian, "You have a good evening, ma'am!"

She walked briskly away, leaving Sadie alone. She looked down at the leather wallet in her hand.

"I shouldn't..."

She shrugged and walked back inside, sitting back down at the table. She opened up his wallet and looked inside.

Clancy's ID card had been slipped into the front pouch, the clear cover revealing his information for all to see; 'Agent Clancy Miller, OSS; Employee Number 24601.' It listed his supervisor (Agent D Cooper) and contact information for his office. Other than that, it was totally unremarkable.

She reached into the wallet's back pocket, pulling out a small pile of cards. On top was his credit card, then there was his social security card and a loyalty card for a supermarket chain.

Sadie sighed.

"What am I doing?" she asked herself, "This is Dad's private stuff! I shouldn't be doing this."

She picked the cards up to put them back in the wallet. A slip of paper slipped out from near the back, wafting gently down onto the wooden table.

Sadie tucked Clancy's cards back into his wallet before picking up the little piece of paper. Her eyes widened.

It was an old, faded photograph, taken just before sunset. Her mother and father stood in the foreground - they looked so young. Barb's hair was styled into a puffy ponytail, and Clancy's face was clean-shaven and lightly speckled with fading acne. Clancy looked exuberant and was gesticulating wildly behind him - he was showing more emotion than Sadie had ever seen from him. Barb looked far more apprehensive, barely managing a smile for the camera.

Behind them, lying shattered and broken in the middle of a field, was the smoking remains of a red, spherical spacecraft.

* * *

AN: And now we have a mystery on our hands...


	5. Chapter Four

I'm sure if we ask questions we'll get answers, right?

* * *

 **Chapter Four**

Sadie picked at her dinner, listening to the clock ticking. The room was silent, and she felt rather uncomfortable. Outside the sun was setting, the sky turning a dark violet colour.

Barb put down her food and looked at her daughter.

"Okay," she said, "What's up?"

"What do you mean 'what's up?'" replied Sadie, "I'm fine, mom."

"You've hardly eaten your food," Barb pointed out, "Is it something _Clancy_ said to you? Because if it is, I'll wring his-"

"Why did you and Dad split up?" asked Sadie.

There was a long silence.

"Because he turned out to be good for nothin'," Barb grunted at last.

"Yeah, but you must've seen something in him once, right?" said Sadie.

Barb nodded soberly.

"When I met Clancy," she said, "He was a little twig of a man with awful social skills and an obsession with the stars. I guess thought he was endearing. It was college, everyone was allowed to be dumb sometimes. We ended up getting hitched too early and everything fell apart from there."

"But what did he do to you?" asked Sadie, "What actually happened?"

Barb furrowed her brow, biting softly on her lip.

"He walked out," she said at last, "Decided some fancy government job was more important than...than his family. Left Beach City and never looked back - heck, he handled the whole divorce through his lawyer. And _good riddance_ , that's what I say."

"So it had nothing to do with...I dunno, aliens?" asked Sadie.

For a split-second, Barb's eyes widened. Then she shook her head and laughed.

"The closest Clancy's ever gonna get to outer space is eating at Planet Kansas," she declared, "I mean, aliens? Where did you get that idea?"

Sadie sighed.

"Nowhere, mom," she said, "Just...thinking out loud."

"That'd be good for your band!" chuckled Barb, "Deadbeat Dads From Outer Space! Think it'll work?"

Sadie didn't answer, going back to picking at her food.

* * *

The sun had long gone down and Lion had taken Connie home. Steven had reheated a few slices of pizza he'd found in the fridge and was sitting on the couch playing Mad Libs with Amethyst and Peridot.

"Peridot, I need a name," he said.

"Percy," replied Peridot.

"Great!" nodded Steven, smiling, "Now Amethyst, I need a body part."

Amethyst grinned.

"I'm gonna say _a-_ "

There was a knock at the door.

"Who could that be?" mused Steven, getting up.

"Boo!" grumbled Amethyst, "My word was gonna be great!"

Steven walked to the door and opened it, finding Sadie standing outside.

"Sadie? Is everything okay?" he asked.

"I asked Mom about Dad," replied Sadie.

"Oh," said Steven, "Did...did he do something really bad?"

"I don't know," replied Sadie, "Because she _lied_ to me. Can I come in?"

Steven nodded, letting Sadie enter.

"What's up, ex-Donut Girl," said Amethyst, waving.

"Look," said Sadie, "Sorry to bother you this late, but something really weird is going on."

"It's Beach City," shrugged Amethyst.

"Yeah, but weirder than _normal_ ," replied Sadie, "Okay, so Dad left his wallet at the library and the librarian gave it to me to send back to him, and I went through it..."

" _Sadie!_ " exclaimed Steven, scandalised.

"...yeah, I know, not the right thing," said Sadie, "But then I found _this._ "

She reached into her pocket and pulled out the picture, showing it to Steven and the two gems.

"Is that a _Roaming Eye?_ " gasped Peridot.

"A roaming what?" asked Sadie.

"It's a ship from the Gem Homeworld," replied Steven.

"We stole one!" added Amethyst, "It was great until they stole it back!"

"That was purely through Navy's mastery of deception," sniffed Peridot, " _I_ was not responsible."

"Homeworld?" mused Sadie, "That's where you and Lars went, right? What's a ship from Homeworld doing on Earth? And what're my parents doing next to it?"

"Beats the heck outta me," replied Amethyst.

"Are you sure?" asked Peridot, "It seems implausible that a Homeworld ship could arrive without the Crystal Gems knowing about it."

"We can ask Garnet and Pearl about it when they get back," suggested Steven, "I'm sure they'll explain everything, right?"

"I hope so," sighed Sadie, "Because I really need answers right now..."

* * *

Roughly halfway between Beach City and Ocean Town was a small access road. Once upon a time, it had led to a cannery by the sea - but times had changed and the cannery had been closed and demolished, the road to nowhere its only remaining legacy.

A short distance down the road was a small depression in the landscape. It was about forty square metres across and ten metres deep - the earth had been covered with abundant grass which made this dip easy to miss from a distance. Only a select few knew what it really was - a crater left by a crashed alien ship.

A black car pulled up next to the hole. Agent Clancy Miller stepped out. He looked around, satisfied himself that he was alone, and sat down at the edge of the crater.

He remembered that day well.

It had been a Saturday. He and Barb had been dating for three months, and neither had really decided whether or not they were taking it seriously. The biggest thing on his mind was whether or not he was going to commit to an astronomy major or not. Those had been simpler times.

They had spent the day by the sea in Ocean Town and were driving back to campus when the enormous object crashed to earth. He being the space nut he was, he immediately turned off onto the access road, hoping to find a meteorite at the impact point. Instead, he had found the Roaming Eye.

Barb had been apprehensive about approaching the wrecked ship, but Clancy would not be deterred. He took a photo for posterity first, using the roof of his car as a makeshift tripod. Then he had walked right up to the ship with merry abandon - these days, as an OSS agent, he would have known to check for background radiation and other hazards first, and it made him cringe to remember how unprofessional he had once been.

In the soil around the ship, he had found the shattered remains of a green gem, and had excitedly picked them up to examine them. He would later learn that these were the shards of an unfortunate Peridot that had perished in the crash.

While he was shouting unrealistic and fantastic theories to Barb, the Crystal Gems arrived on the scene.

He remembered his awe upon seeing them. Pearl, graceful and fearless and fiercely protective of her leader; Garnet, stoic, mysterious and powerful; and then there was Rose Quartz herself, perhaps the most remarkable of them all, gentle and compassionate but the greatest warrior of them all. To an amateur Ufologist like himself, it was like walking in the presence of Caesar, Napoleon or the Quarrymen. He had so many questions of them - there was so much he needed, _needed_ to know.

Rose walked past him, instead walking over to Barb. She had picked up a deep red gem - it was cracked but intact. Gently, Rose had taken the gem from her, holding it in her hands. She looked down upon it and wept a single tear.

There was a brilliant glow. Clancy had watched as the light around the gem seemed to shift, morphing into a short, humanoid shape. It fell to the floor, landing on its face - the light dimmed, revealing a red figure with square-shaped hair. He heard the Garnet's whisper - 'a Ruby.'

She began to try to stand out - Barb offered her hand to help, which she took. She began to babble - "What planet is this? What happened to my ship? I need to report to my supervisor!"

Barb put her hands on her shoulders and looked her in the eyes.

"It's okay," she told her, "You're safe now..."

And there he was, standing off to the side, forgotten by everyone.

"Why did I come here?" Clancy asked himself, staring solemnly into the crater, "Nothing good ever came from this place..."

"Because you couldn't leave without coming back first."

Clancy got up and turned around. Garnet and Pearl were standing next to his car.

"Really, Garnet?" sighed Clancy, "We talked about this earlier. I have my orders."

"You're going to regret taking it, Clancy," said Garnet, "You know that."

"I've regretted everything I've done in this place," replied Clancy, "What's one more thing?"

He shook his head.

"What exactly are you hoping to achieve?" he demanded, "If I don't take it, they'll just send someone else to get it. And they'll be clumsy about it because they won't have my experience and they'll probably get somebody hurt. If I do it, it's done quietly and cleanly."

Garnet shook her head.

"Garnet, why don't we just stop him now?" demanded Pearl, "It's hardly like he deserves a chance!"

"Because they'll send another agent, Pearl," replied Clancy, "Just like I said. And that other agent might start looking into things - _your_ things."

He walked back towards his car. As he passed her, Garnet put a hand on his arm.

"Make up a lie, Clancy," she urged, "You can tell them it wasn't here."

Clancy narrowed his eyes.

"I. Have. My. Orders," he snarled.

He got into his car and drove away.

* * *

There was a pillar of light as the warp pad activated. When it disappeared, Garnet and Pearl were standing in front of the temple door - they were immediately approached by Steven and Sadie, with Amethyst and Peridot hanging slightly back.

"Oh! Sadie, right? What are you doing here?" quizzed Pearl.

"What do you know about a ship that crashed twenty years ago?" asked Sadie.

Steven helpfully held up the photograph for them.

"Oh... _that_ ," said Pearl, "Uh..."

"It's a Roaming Eye," said Garnet, calmly, "It was probably here to check up on something Homeworld left behind..."

"In hindsight, probably the Cluster," Pearl interrupted quickly.

"Yes," nodded Garnet, "When we found it, it was damaged beyond repair. There were no survivors."

"Why didn't I know about this?" demanded Amethyst.

"There was a Lil' Butler marathon that night," replied Garnet, "You were with Greg."

"Yeah, that makes sense," admitted Amethyst.

"Sure does!" exclaimed Pearl, "And _oh my goodness_ would you look at the time! I'm going back to my room to bed! Goodnight!"

She turned around and walked briskly into the temple.

"So there's nothing weird that could have happened with my parents, right?" asked Sadie.

She looked up at Garnet, trying to catch a glimpse of her eyes through her visor. She failed.

"Nothing," said Garnet, her tone final, "Goodnight, Sadie. Goodnight Steven."

She walked to the temple door.

"Don't _I_ get a goodnight?" demanded Peridot.

" _Goodnight,_ Peridot."

Garnet entered the temple and disappeared.

"Okay, quick question," said Amethyst, "Since when does Pearl have a bed?"

"She _doesn't_ " replied Steven, clenching his fists, "They lied to us."

He turned to Sadie, whose expression was unreadable. There was a long silence.

"Library," she said at last, "Tomorrow. We're gonna ask Dad..."

* * *

AN: Tell me lies, tell me sweet little lies...


	6. Chapter Five

The new day dawns...

* * *

 **Chapter Five**

" _This is Delmarva In The Morning, it's six o'clock Monday - time to go back to work, I'm afraid. But who says it has to be all bad, huh? We always like to start the day off with a song here, and we got a ripper of one today - this is_ Honesty _by Billy..._ "

Agent Clancy Miller tuned out the radio as he finished making his watery motel coffee. He gazed out the window - he could see clouds in the distance, lit a deep red by the rising sun. _Red sky in the morning_ , he thought, _sailor take warning._

He shook his head, grabbing his tie from the top of his bed and tying it around his collar. Rain or no rain, he was getting his job done today.

Not far away, Connie had already been awakened by the sound of her mother preparing for work. She had laid in bed for a while (school was off for another week) - eventually the phone rang.

She picked it up. It was Steven, asking her to meet him outside the library. He filled her in on the events of the previous night - she pulled herself out of bed and promised to meet him soon.

An hour or so later, Sadie climbed up the stairs from her bedroom, carrying Clancy's wallet in her pocket. She found her mother in the living room - she was not in her postal uniform.

"Everything alright?" she asked.

"Yeah," nodded Barb, "I'm just taking a day to get some stuff done."

Sadie nodded back and left the house.

Barb waited for her to leave before picking up her phone and speed dialling a number.

"Greg? It's Barb," she said, "Can you do me a favour?"

* * *

"Don't worry, Agent Miller, we'll find where your item's gone!"

The man in charge of Beach City's Public Records was an elderly fellow by the name of Michael. He seemed repressively cheerful and extremely talkative, which Clancy would readily admit were not his favourite traits in a person. That said, he'd looked up the U-Stor's records on the catalogue and was willing to take him out back to find them, so the agent was hardly going to judge him too harshly.

They were walking between two long shelves, covered in rows and rows of boxes. Michael had said the files went all the way back to William Dewey's time - the computerisation of the record catalogue had been a godsend for him.

"Okay," he said, "Serial Number V-X-K-X dash three eight one thirteen five twelve five fifteen fourteen...here it is!"

He knelt down and pulled a small folder out of a box.

"Okay, what's the name?" he asked.

"PHILOSOPHER," replied Clancy.

"Philosopher...philosopher...philosopher...ah, here we are!"

He took out a small sheet of paper.

"Says here," he said, "That it was moved to the Mayor's Office for safekeeping. There's a note here that says they're surprised your boys didn't do that in the first place."

"We had an arrangement with the old U-Stor guy, Walter," shrugged Clancy, "He was on our payroll. I guess we didn't think Dewey could keep it safe."

He turned around.

"Guess I'd better pay him a visit," he sighed.

"You'd better not, he's been voted out," said Walter.

"What? Did his son become mayor or something?" asked Clancy.

"Nope," replied Michael, "Nanefua Pizza. First non-Dewey to be mayor for...well, _ever_."

"Huh," nodded Clancy, "Well, I'll go talk to her, then. Thank you, you've been a big help. Does her office open today?"

"It's Monday," said Michael, "Everybody's back at work today."

" _Oh, thank god._ "

Clancy walked out of the records and back through the library. It had been a good start to the day, and he hoped it was an omen. The sooner he could grab the object and leave, the better.

He stepped out the front door and felt the wind on his skin. In the distance, over the sea, he could see the dark clouds slowly blowing in.

"Hmm," he said, "Storm's brewing."

He started to walk to his car.

"Dad."

Clancy jumped, turning to face Sadie. She, Steven, Connie and Amethyst were walking up to him through the parking lot.

"S-S-Sadie!" he exclaimed, "Oh, and your friends, Steven, Connie and...a purple person!"

"It's _Amethyst_ ," grunted Amethyst.

"Right, right," nodded Clancy.

Sadie reached into her pocket and pulled out Clancy's wallet.

"The librarian gave me this," she said.

"M-m-my wallet!" exclaimed Clancy, "I-I didn't realise I'd left it - I-I paid for the motel on m-my OSS card, I d-I didn't even think to..."

Sadie opened the wallet, revealing the photograph.

"What is this?" she asked.

There was a long silence.

"Look, look, that's...that's just a Photoshop I did for fun in the office," stammered Clancy, rubbing the back of his head, "I-it's just a _silly thing_..."

"A silly thing involving your ex-wife?" replied Connie, "Who you can hardly stand?"

"And where'd you get a picture of a Homeworld ship, huh?" demanded Amethyst.

Sadie stepped forward, looking Clancy straight in the eye.

"Everyone's lied to me about this, dad," urged Sadie, "What's all this about? I just wanna know the _truth_."

Clancy stood, frozen in his daughter's gaze. He opened and closed his mouth, but nothing came out.

"Dad," begged Sadie, " _Please._ "

"I...I can't."

He closed his eyes and breathed in and out.

"I'm sorry," he said, "I just... _can't_."

Sadie saw red.

" _Why not?!_ " she thundered, "Why is everything so damn _afraid_ of talking about this to me? _Why can't you just be honest?!_ "

"I m-I made a promise," blurted Clancy, "I promised Rose-wait, I mean..."

" _Rose?_ " exclaimed Steven.

"I-I-I have to go," said Clancy, "I need to get to the M-Mayor's office."

" _No!_ " bellowed Sadie, "Don't _run!_ "

Clancy climbed into his car and shut the door. Hurriedly he switched on the ignition and pulled out of the parking lot.

" _Come back!_ " screamed Sadie.

Clancy drove away, leaving her behind.

There was a long silence.

"Okay," said Connie, "We got _somewhere_ , I guess."

"But every answer we get just raises more questions!" exclaimed Steven, "And now _mom's_ involved!"

He scratched his chin.

"Which I guess at this point isn't that surprising," he admitted.

"What I wanna know is why _I_ didn't know this," said Amethyst, clenching her fists.

Sadie sat down on the curb and buried her head in her hands.

"Sadie?"

Steven sat down next to her and put a hand on her shoulder.

"Who's left to ask?" she asked mournfully.

"Maybe you could try your mom again?" asked Connie.

"I know my mom, Steven," replied Sadie, "If she doesn't wanna talk, she's not gonna talk."

"I got an idea."

All eyes fell on Amethyst.

"You found the picture by going through your dad's stuff, right?" she said, "Maybe you'll find something if you go through your mom's?"

"That's kind of an invasion of privacy, Amethyst," replied Connie.

Sadie stood up.

"It's worth a shot," she declared, "I need to know."

* * *

It took nearly an hour to get in to see the mayor. Clancy wondered if he had been kept waiting deliberately as he stepped into her office.

"Mayor Pizza?" he said, "Agent Clancy Miller, OSS - pleasure to meet you."

He offered his hand. Nanefua glared at him - her hand did not move.

Clancy decided that his theory was probably correct.

"Okay, I'll just get right to the point," he said, sitting down, "I'm looking for the object codenamed PHILOSOPHER."

"Yes," replied Nanefua, "Barbara Miller called me yesterday. She told me you wanted it."

"...oh," said Clancy, " _I see._ What else did she tell you?"

"Enough to know _exactly_ what sort of person you are," growled Nanefua.

Clancy crossed his arms.

"Look, I have my orders," he said, "I..."

"Yes, that's always the case with men like you," sneered Nanefua, " _Just following orders._ "

"The _object_ , ma'am," snapped Clancy, "Hand it over."

"I can't," replied Nanefua, "I no longer have it."

" _What?_ "

Nanefua smiled humourlessly.

"It was picked up this morning," she said.

"By who?" demanded Clancy.

"Hold on," replied Nanefua, slowly pulling a ledger from the desk drawer, "Let me check."

She checked the names on the ledger, running her finger up and down the page. She smirked as Clancy grew more and more agitated.

"There we are," she said, "It's...hold on..."

She wiped her glasses on her jacket.

"...it is...Greg Universe."

"Thank you, ma'am," grumbled Clancy, rolling his eyes, "You've been a real help."

He got up and started to walk to the door.

"You don't look much like her, Agent Miller."

Clancy turned around as Nanefua spoke.

"What does that mean?" demanded Clancy.

"Just a thought," replied Nanefua, "Just a thought..."

* * *

Greg climbed out of the van, whistling a tune. He carried a small, locked box.

Barb had entrusted him to put it somewhere safe. She hadn't explained anything else about it, but her sense of urgency and demand that it be well hidden had clued him in on exactly what it was. Greg knew precisely what this must be.

It was _definitely_ Sadie's birthday present.

He used his key to unlock the Millers' front door and headed to Barb's room. He knew _exactly_ the place - the top of Barb's closet, right at the back.

He opened the door.

Sadie, Steven and Connie froze. All three were rifling through one of Barb's drawers, and various clothes and items lay discarded on the floor. There was a long, long silence.

Amethyst leaned out of the closet.

"Hey Greg," she said casually.

* * *

AN: The moment of truth approaches.


	7. Chapter Six

**Chapter Six**

"Okay," said Greg, "Is something going on?"

Steven and Connie glanced at Sadie.

"Should I...should I tell him?" Steven asked.

Sadie hesitated and nodded.

Steven explained everything. He rattled off events quickly and almost without taking a breath; Greg listened patiently, letting his sun talk. Finally, when Steven was finished, Greg spoke up.

"How long ago was this photo taken?" asked Greg.

"I don't know exactly," replied Sadie, "I mean, my parents looked young, I guess..."

Greg scratched his beard.

"Okay, I don't anything about Barb or the Gems keeping secrets from you guys," he said, "But I can tell you what I know."

He sat on the bed.

"Barb and Clancy got hitched pretty quickly," he said, "I think they'd been dating about four months? Back then the state government had this thing where they gave newlyweds a loan to buy a house, so they bought this place. Vidalia and I helped 'em move in."

"What were they like?" asked Sadie, "I mean, together?"

"I don't really know," replied Greg, "Your mom became a mailwoman early, so I saw a lot of her. I think she'd dropped out of college at that point, I'm not sure. I didn't see much of Clancy; he kept to himself."

Greg shrugged.

"But I wasn't actually out that much at that time either," he continued, "Because that's when me and Amethyst started getting into _Lil' Butler_. I mean, we'd spend hours watching that show..."

"Greg, he's already heard this story," grunted Amethyst.

"Eh, it was before it got...ugly," shrugged Greg, "I mean, back then Rose was really happy that we were hanging out together. She really encouraged it..."

"But what were they like when they were together?" asked Sadie.

Greg furrowed his brow.

"Y'know, that's the darndest thing," he said, "After they moved in, I don't think I ever saw them together."

There was a pause.

"Yo Greg, what's in the box?" asked Amethyst.

She pointed at the box in Greg's hand. It was a simple teak thing, with a hinged lid and a brass lock.

"This thing?" asked Greg, looking down at the small box in his hands, "No idea. Barb wanted me to hide it - reckon it might be a present for someone or something? She didn't say."

"No. She didn't."

Sadie jumped and Greg turned around. Barb was standing in the door, arms crossed.

"But she _was_ hoping you'd take it somewhere that wasn't my house," she snapped.

Clancy pulled up in front of the car wash and climbed out of his car. He winced a little as a crack of thunder startled him. The precipitation in the air was growing - the storm was nearly here.

"Mr. Universe!" he called, "I need to speak to you about an object taken from the Mayor's office!"

He looked around. The area seemed deserted.

"If you do not answer, I have the authority to take you into custody!" he shouted.

There was no reply.

For a few minutes, Clancy walked around, checking everywhere for a sign of Greg. There was nothing - even his van was gone.

"No," he growled to himself, "The trail can't be cold now, he's gotta have gone somewhere."

He walked back into his car and climbed into the driver's seat. He sat there for a few moments, thinking.

Greg had only taken the object from Nanefua this morning - he must have been tipped off. The only people who knew what he was really after were Garnet, Pearl and...

Wait.

 _"And what," Barb demanded, "Did they send you to get?"_

 _Clancy narrowed his eyes._

 _"I'm sorry," he growled, "But that is classified."_

 _"Clancy, if you..." Barb spat._

 _"Classified," repeated Clancy._

"Oh no," he said to himself, "No, no, _no, no, NO!_ "

He turned on the engine and raced out of the car wash, hurtling towards the Miller residence.

"Greg," said Barb wearily, taking the box from Greg. "When I asked you to put that thing somewhere secret, I mean somewhere that _wasn't_ my house."

"Sorry, I just assumed it was a present or something," shrugged Greg.

Barb shook her head.

"He'll probably be on his way by now," she said, "Greg, can you..."

"By _him_ , you mean dad, right?" interrupted Sadie.

" _Sadie_ ," warned Barb.

"Mom, please, just tell me," pleaded Sadie, "What is going on? I saw the picture with the Roaming Eye, I know it had something to do with Steven's moms, I just..."

Barb looked at her feet.

"I promised Rose..."

There was a loud bang on the door.

" _Office of Strategic Services! Open up!_ "

Barb swore loudly. Steven gasped and covered his ears.

"Look, there'll be time for this later," she said, "Right now, you need to go."

"But Mom!"

"No buts, Sadie!" snapped Barb, "Greg, take 'em out the back door before-"

There was a loud crash from the front door. Seconds later, Clancy had barged into the doorway of Barb's room - his pistol was drawn but not yet aimed.

"I told you I'd get it, Ba... _Sadie?_ " exclaimed Clancy.

Any reply was suddenly cut off by the window shattering. Garnet and Pearl leapt into the room, weapons out.

"We gave you a chance, Clancy," growled Garnet, "But going after Greg was a step too far."

"Yeah!" shouted Peridot, leaning in the window, "I saw you at the car wash! I got you!"

"Wait, you were gonna _arrest me?_ " spluttered Greg.

"I thought you had the object!" snapped Clancy, "And you clearly _did_ , so I wasn't _wrong_..."

"Oh, you're _impossible!_ " snorted Pearl, "There's _always_ an excuse, isn't there? We tried talking..."

"What do you mean 'you tried talking?'" exclaimed Amethyst, "You've been _meeting_ with him? What the heck gives?!"

"Okay, everyone calm down, I'm sure we can work this out," said Connie.

"No! I'm _done_ being calm!" replied Clancy, "This was supposed to be an easy job, and I am at my _wit's-_ "

" ** _ALL OF YOU, SHUT UP!_** " thundered Barb.

The room fell deafly silent.

Sadie swallowed, looking at her mother. Her face was red, she was gritting her teeth and she was visibly shaking - if yesterday she had been angry, now she was positively _livid_. She watched Clancy step back, a tinge of fear in his expression.

Barb took a long, deep breath.

"Okay," she said, "Here's what's gonna happen. Sadie and Clancy are going to stay here. The rest of you are going to leave this room _now._ Am I clear?"

For a moment, nobody moved. Then, almost as one, everybody else walked briskly out the door, Connie nervously shutting it behind her when they were all out.

Barb sat on the bed, sighing heavily. She hugged the box close.

"Barb," said Clancy, slowly and deliberately, "I _need_ the object."

"It's not mine to give you," replied Barb, "And it was _never_ yours to take."

She shook her head.

"The Gems tried to reason with you, and that didn't stop you," she said, "I tried to hide it, and that didn't stop you. I'm pretty sure fighting back isn't gonna stop you. So you do what you want, Clancy..."

Clancy reached for the box. A glare from Barb stopped him.

"...but first," she said, "We tell Sadie the truth."

"Mom?" asked Sadie.

Clancy glanced from his daughter to the box.

"Fine," he said bitterly, "I guess I'm never coming back anyway. Might as well burn my last bridge."

He sat down against the wall. He looked tired and old.

"We were there when the Roaming Eye crashed," he said, "We got there just before Rose Quartz did."

"Garnet said there were no survivors," said Sadie.

Clancy shook his head.

"Nah, there was one," he explained, "A Ruby. 1GK."

" _Kay_ ," sighed Barb.

"Yeah," nodded Clancy, "Kay."

"She wouldn't go with Rose," continued Barb, "She was terrified of Earth, of the Crystal Gems, of Rose. So Clancy got the idea that she'd stay with us until she was used to Earth."

"She was our secret," added Clancy, "Nobody who wasn't there could know. We didn't know how she'd react to other people. We'd see how she went, and then she'd introduce herself to others if she wanted to. Rose wanted to make sure she'd feel safe."

"Only problem was, you can't really hide an alien in a college dorm," said Barb ruefully.

"So what did you do?" asked Sadie.

"Back then, there were government loans available for newlyweds who wanted to buy a house," replied Clancy, "Some kind of economic stimulus. We were already in a relationship, so we figured we'd just tie the knot and get our own place. It'd make things easier."

"Marry in haste, repent at leisure," sniffed Barb.

Clancy snorted.

"So there we were, in this house," said Barb, "Me, him and Kay. I dropped college and became a mailwoman to pay the bills. He kept on going to college to keep our friends from getting suspicious. At night, we'd teach Kay about the world - sometimes Rose would help."

"She'd send Greg off to watch that stupid butler show to keep him from catching on," said Clancy, "Kept Amethyst out of the loop because she thought she might blab. Rose was adamant - 'we'll introduce Kay when she's ready', she said."

"But then _someone_ betrayed her," said Barb darkly.

Sadie looked at Clancy, who only nodded morosely.

"The government had noticed the crashed ship on their satellites," he said, "Rose, Garnet and Pearl had already cleaned up most of the wreck by the time the OSS got there, but they couldn't get everything in time. They went on the hunt, and about twelve months later they found me."

"And you told them about Kay?" gasped Sadie.

Clancy swallowed, looking up at Barb.

"If I tell her this..." he began.

"I know," nodded Barb.

Clancy closed his eyes and breathed in.

"The thing is," he said, "As the months went on, your mother and Kay got... _closer_. They became friends, which I initially thought was great - my wife's friend was an alien, who else could say that? But we started to spend less and less time together, and she and Kay spent more and more - before long, I came to realise that our relationship was probably over."

Sadie looked at Barb, who nodded.

"I couldn't help it," she said, "Once I got past her fear, she was...sweet and gentle...she had a temper sometimes, but when she _sang_..."

"When the OSS came," continued Clancy, staring at his shoes, "They offered me everything I'd ever wanted. I'd be an agent at the Extraterrestrial Desk, chasing UFO's to my heart's content. All I had to do was give them Kay."

"Dad?" Sadie whispered, her eyes wide.

Clancy swallowed.

"I never meant for it to happen," he said, "I was just supposed to go in with a couple of agents, grab her, and then get out. They gave me a suit and a gun - I felt like I could do anything. But Rose was there that night, and w-we didn't expect - I-I-I got _startled-_ "

He trailed off, unable to continue.

"And weren't you just so _proud_ of yourself?" snarled Barb, her eyes visibly watering.

Clancy clenched his fists.

"It would never have happened," growled Clancy, "If you hadn't..."

" _Don't you dare_ ," interrupted Barb.

Sadie looked at the box.

"So in this box," she said, "It's Kay's gem, right?"

"Yeah," nodded Barb, "And what happened that night is why we split up."

"But this doesn't make sense!" exclaimed Sadie, "You said that Dad left because he didn't want to raise a kid! You always told me he left just after I was born!"

"He did," replied Barb.

"So you fell in love with Kay while you were pregnant?" asked Sadie.

Barb and Clancy looked at each other.

"That's why Rose was there," said Barb, "And thank god too, because I need to save...I...I needed..."

"Rose was helping you give birth," nodded Sadie.

Clancy shook his head.

"Nobody knew what was going to happen," he said, "It had never been done before. Rose wanted to see before Greg..."

"Dad," said Sadie, "What're you saying?"

"You wanna know why I've always been so nervous around you?" asked Clancy, "You wanna know why I tried to avoid you? I was always afraid I'd slip up, that I'd say something and you'd find out..."

" _Dad?_ "

Clancy shook his head.

"I'm not your father, Sadie."


	8. Chapter Seven

I'd like to apoligise for the lack of review replies - FFN hasn't let me see my reviews for several days. I shall endeavour to answer them now, very sorry for the delay.

* * *

 **Chapter Seven**

For years, Sadie had thought it was all simple.

It was a story told depressingly often. Two people, barely more than kids, meet in college and fall in love. They get married in haste and suddenly one of them is pregnant. The love fades, the marriage collapses and the whole thing ends when the baby is born. He goes off to the city and gets a government job. She raises the child on her own. It wasn't a nice story, but she'd always appreciated that her mother didn't try to sugar-coat it - didn't try to _lie_ to her.

 _It couldn't be true._

Yeah, that had to be it. Clancy was a liar. Heck, he was a government agent, it was his _job_ to lie. This had to be a trick, a way of manipulating her into helping him get that box. Her mother would deny it. She'd get mad, maybe she'd punch him. He'd try to fight back, her mother and the gems would beat him up and then everything would go back to normal.

But when she looked at Barb, she saw no anger, no indignation, no attempt to challenge Clancy. Her expression was grave - for a moment she looked Sadie in the eye, but she quickly turned her face away.

"Mom," said Sadie, "H-he's lying, right? I mean, this is...he's gotta be lying..."

Barb said nothing.

"It makes no sense!" continued Sadie, "I...I saw Steven's mom's video, if I was Kay's daughter I-I'd have her gem, right?"

"Steven's mom's video?" quizzed Clancy, "What do you mean..."

He trailed off before nodded.

"Of course," he said, " _That's_ where Rose went."

When Kay's gem was... _shot_ ," Barb winced as she said the word, "It got cracked. _Bad._ The only way to save you was to take it off."

Sadie gazed at the box, eyes wide.

"So that...that's my...that's _my gem?_ " she exclaimed.

Barb nodded.

Sadie stared, her mind racing. For a few seconds, she had no idea how to feel about this. Her thoughts were scrambled, her heart racing. Eventually, she found words.

"All this time," she said, " _All this time_ you've _lied_ to me."

"Sadie..."

"You made me think my dad left because he didn't _want_ me," she continued, a deep, burning rage developing in her chest, "Why the _hell_ would you do that _?_ "

"It was a cover story," said Clancy, "In case anybody asked questions. I was the only person who could plausibly pose as your-"

" _I DIDN'T ASK YOU!_ " thundered Sadie.

Clancy stopped talking, chastised. Sadie turned her attention back to her mother.

"I just wanted you to live a normal life," replied Barb, her voice shaking slightly, "And I hated, _hated_ your f...Clancy. It was an outlet for that, I...I never realised..."

Clancy sighed and stood up.

"We're wasting time," he said, "I promised the truth, I gave it. Give me the box, Barbara."

Barb laughed hollowly.

"I told you, it's not mine to give," she said, "It's hers."

She held the box to Sadie.

Sadie took the box with shaking hands. She expected it to be heavy, but it was far lighter than she had anticipated. It looked and felt like a perfectly normal wooden box - first impressions, she supposed, could be deceiving.

Barb nodded and turned back to Clancy.

"You wanna take it from her?" she asked, "You do what you want, Clancy."

Clancy turned to Sadie. His hand tightened around his pistol, and he swallowed. For a long time, they stared at each other, unmoving.

"Give me the box, Sadie," he said.

Sadie looked down at the box and then back at him. Part of her was urging her to hand it over - he had a gun, for crying out loud. And why would she want to keep this? It had caused her nothing but trouble - it had shattered everything she thought she'd known about herself and her family. She ought to just let it disappear in an OSS lab.

Her grip tightened.

"No," she said.

Clancy looked from her to the box, and then from the box to his gun. He began to shake visibly, a few beads of sweat running down his forehead.

He raised the gun...

...and tucked it back into his jacket.

"I can't do this," he said, "Not...not again."

He turned to the door.

"You win," he sighed, "Goodbye, Barbara."

He opened the door and walked out of the room.

* * *

The storm had arrived.

Rain lashed down outside the Miller house as Clancy walked out the front door. He was glad to leave - he had ignored a barrage of requests for answers from Amethyst and Peridot and a an attempt to see if he was okay from Steven, instead opting to leave immediately. He just wanted to get on the road and get back to Washington; the inevitable furious grilling he'd get from the Head notwithstanding.

He opened up the front door and climbed into the driver's seat, ready to leave.

"Wait!"

He looked back, the car door still half open. Sadie was running across the front yard - she stopped on the sidewalk next to him.

"I have to know - why didn't you take it?" she asked.

Clancy clutched the steering wheel and looked straight ahead, watching the rain flow down his windscreen.

"When I betrayed your mother and Kay, I got everything I ever wanted," he said, "And it felt so _empty_. When I finally got to Washington, when I first went to work as an OSS agent, all I could think of was how much I wanted to take it back."

"But you can't," nodded Sadie.

"I can numb myself if I bury myself in my work," replied Clancy, "And maybe I thought if I sent Kay's gem off to some lab somewhere, I'd get some kind of closure. But in the end, that would've meant hurting you."

He sighed.

"I guess I just couldn't have lived with that," he said.

"But you're not my real father," reminded Sadie, "We barely even know each other."

Clancy nodded.

"You still called me 'dad'," he replied, "That's gotta mean something, right?"

He put his key in the ignition and turned on the engine.

"I need to go, Sadie," he said, "For what it's worth, I'm sorry. For everything."

"I guess I'll see you around, Clancy," replied Sadie.

Clancy gave her a sad smile.

"Guess you will, Sadie."

Sadie stepped back and he shut the door. Without another moment's hesitation, he pulled away from the curb and drove off into the night.

* * *

Sadie stepped inside, taking a deep breath. She looked on at the group gathered in the kitchen.

"So," asked Barb, "What happens now?"

"Now," replied Sadie, "We tell them the truth. And when we've done that, I'm out."

Barb opened her mouth to reply - she stopped herself, closed her eyes and nodded gravely.

The conversation that followed was long and not pretty. Sadie watched the emotions of the others in the room - the shock of Connie and Greg, the building rage of Amethyst, the slight guilt in Pearl's eyes, Garnet's unflappable stoicism. Only Steven's face was unreadable - was he shocked? Saddened? Betrayed? Sadie couldn't tell.

Eventually, their story ended.

Amethyst reacted first, pointing an accusatory finger to Garnet and Pearl.

"There was another gem on Earth and you never told me!" she exclaimed, "You just used me to lie to Greg!"

"Amethyst, it wasn't _personal_ ," replied Pearl, "We just didn't think you were...uh... _mature_ enough to handle something like..."

"Mature?!" spluttered Amethyst, " _MATURE?!_ Are you _kidding_ me, Pearl?! I've been a Crystal Gem for _thousands of years!_ "

She shook her head.

"What _else_ haven't you told me about?" she demanded.

"Amethyst, calm down," replied Garnet firmly.

" _Calm down? I-_ "

"Amethyst?"

Peridot grabbed her hand, squeezing it gently.

Amethyst gritted her teeth and shook her head.

"Whatever, I'm out," she grunted, walking out the door, "You need me, I'll be in my room."

Garnet, Pearl and Peridot left next, headed back to the Temple. Garnet said that they needed to discuss what had happened, but Sadie thought she just wanted an excuse to leave. She didn't blame her.

As for her, she grabbed a few changes of clothes and essentials and packed them in a backpack. She was just walking to the door when her mother called out to her.

"Sadie," she said, "Can't we talk about this?"

Sadie shook her head.

"I need time to think, okay?" she replied, "I...I just can't stay here."

She walked outside without looking back.

Outside, Greg and Connie were getting into the van. Steven was following them - he stopped as he saw Sadie come out and sprinted over to her.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

"No," replied Sadie, "But thanks for asking."

"But where are you gonna go?" said Steven worriedly.

"I dunno," admitted Sadie, "I might ask Sour Cream if I can crash on his couch for a while..."

"Do you want to come to the Temple?" asked Steven.

"Nah, I don't wanna make you uncomfortable or anything..."

"No, it's fine!" replied Steven, "You can stay on the couch! I mean, you'd have to put up with Peridot living in the bathroom, but you'd have me and the gems around to help you figure out how to deal with Kay and your mom! And you could come with me when I deliver stuff to Lars..."

"Steven, I couldn't..."

"Just try it?" asked Steven, "Please?"

"Okay," nodded Sadie, "Just until I know what I'm doing next, alright?"

Steven smiled and gave a thumbs up.

"No problem," he said.

He led her to the van and they climbed in.

"You alright, Sadie?" asked Connie.

Sadie sighed wearily.

"I will be," she replied.

Greg pulled away from the house. Sadie watched it disappear before closing her eyes and listening to the faint sound of the radio.

* * *

Clancy drove through the night, out of Beach City and on to the open road. He listened to the soft sound of the radio. He heard the song that came on, and chuckled bitterly.

"Figures," he muttered.

He drove ever onward, leaving Beach City far behind.

 _And the cat's in the cradle and the silver spoon,  
Little boy blue and the man in the moon,  
When you comin' home, dad? I don't know when,  
But we'll get together then,  
You know we'll have a good time then..._

* * *

AN: I think both Barb and Clancy could have handled this better...


	9. Chapter Eight

And now the aftermath.

* * *

 **Chapter Eight**

Jamie walked down the street, heading towards the post office. It was a wet and miserable Tuesday morning, and he shivered under his umbrella.

This was the sort of day he would have loved to spend at home, sitting in bed with a book and listening peacefully to the pouring rain on his window. But, alas, he was the postman, and by Jove, the post had to get through. It was his duty to society, his sacred quest, his hero's journey.

Well, that and he had to pay his rent.

Jamie stepped into the post office, setting down his sodden umbrella by the door. He noticed Barb already there, sitting at the table in the break room.

"Oh, apologies, Barb," he said, "My alarm didn't go off this morning and..."

He trailed off. Barb was staring down at a mug of instant coffee on the table, her expression morose.

Jamie carefully walked up to the table and sat down.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

Barb sighed and looked up - her eyes were bloodshot and sunken.

"Do I look okay, Jamie?" she asked.

Jamie swallowed, unsure of how to answer this question.

"I-If you need to go home, I can handle both mail runs today," he said, "It wouldn't be a problem..."

"Nah," replied Barb, "I need to keep my mind off it."

She got up, walking towards the small bags of mail waiting to be sorted. She stopped suddenly and turned back to Jamie.

"You've still got both parents, right kid?" she asked.

"Uh...yeah," Jamie replied.

"And they're both still together?"

"Yeah," nodded Jamie, "I mean, they-they live back in Wilmingmore but..."

"Good," said Barb, "Word of advice, Jamie? Don't take that for granted."

Jamie had no reply. It was probably just as well, as Barb immediately set straight to work. He took the hint - the discussion had ended.

He went over to help, his mind wracked with curiosity. What had happened to Barb? Did she need help? What could he do?

He looked over to her - she seemed to look old this morning.

No, Jamie thought, all he could do was give her some space. She'd get through.

After all, she was a tough woman.

* * *

Steven lay on the bed, watching the rain. Amethyst sat next to him, and Peridot sat on the floor at the end of the bed. Nobody was speaking - nobody could think of something to say.

Down stairs, Sadie sat on the couch, looking down at the box. Occasionally she'd sigh to herself, but she stayed where she was.

"So," sighed Amethyst at last, "Heck of a couple of days, huh?"

Steven nodded.

"Are you holding up okay, Amethyst?" he asked.

Amethyst shrugged.

"Still pretty mad," she admitted.

"Understandable," said Peridot.

"Yeah," muttered Steven, his voice slightly numb.

There was a beep from his pocket. He pulled out his phone, checking the message. It was Connie.

 _Is everything okay?_

Steven rolled over, looking down at Sadie. She looked back up at him. Her eyes were slightly red.

"Sadie, are you..." he began.

"No," replied Sadie.

Steven frowned.

"...but I will be," finished Sadie.

Steven allowed himself a small smile.

Sadie sat back, taking her phone out of her pocket. She pressed a button, playing a song - it was quiet, morose, bittersweet. She closed her eyes, laying down on the couch as she listened.

Steven and Amethyst glanced at each other. They nodded - Amethyst went back to watching the rain.

Steven tapped a quick reply on his phone.

 _It's gonna be_. _:)_

He laid back down and watched the rain fall.

 _Well I've been afraid of changes,  
'Cause I've built my life around you,  
But time makes you bolder,  
Even children get older,  
And I'm gettin' older too..._

* * *

Clancy stepped into his small Washington apartment. He dropped his bag, took off his jacket and immediately walked over to his bed, falling down onto his back. He winced slightly as the springs creaked.

The Head had not been pleased - that much was an understatement. But he'd swallowed Clancy's lie - as far as he knew, Rose had hidden the gem, and he had no way of knowing where. He would have asked, he _really_ would have sir, but she seemed to have disappeared herself. That was it, sir - sorry, sir.

The Head had raged for a few minutes and threatened to dock his pay, but he'd eventually calmed down and accepted that he wasn't getting his gem - heck, he'd even _apologised_ for yelling before Clancy left. That never happened.

But now he was home, in a dark empty apartment. Honestly, he was relieved - after all that had happened, he wanted nothing more than to sit at home alone and _think_.

He was therefore very annoyed when he heard a knock at the door.

Muttering to himself, he got up and went to answer it. His visitor was short, thin and dark-skinned, and for a moment Clancy thought he must be a college student - but then he noticed the standard OSS black suit. The kid - he couldn't be more than twenty-five - was smiling brightly, an eager gleam in his eye - a gleam he himself had once had. He offered a hand.

"Agent Philbert Bracknell, sir," he said.

"Interesting name," muttered Clancy.

"Uh, yeah," nodded Bracknell, "I've been asked to give you this, sir."

He handed Clancy a letter. Muttering to himself again, he quickly opened it and read the contents.

 _Agent Miller,_

 _You are to be transferred effective immediately to Wilmingmore to head the Desk's new Delmarva Office, where you will observe Gem activities._

 _Agent Bracknell will serve as your partner until further notice._

 _Don't screw this one up._

 _From the Head,  
OSS HQ_

Clancy reread the letter, shaking his head.

"Well, sir," said Bracknell eagerly, "What do you think? Think we'll make a good team?"

Clancy lowered the letter and looked at the impressionable young agent.

He closed his eyes and swore loudly.

* * *

AN: And that is where The Eye of the Storm ends.

This isn't to say that the story is over. There's much more to come, and I considered just keeping this story going, but I figured it would work better if the next part was started as a new story. So that's going to be coming very soon - I might take a few days off, but it's coming.

Here's a few things you can expect;  
\- Peedee, Ronaldo and the Cool Kids  
\- Clancy Miller Hates His Life  
\- A schism between the Crystal Gems  
\- Sadie learns more about herself and Kay  
\- LARS OF THE STARS  
\- and a few questions answered, perhaps involving the raising of further questions.

And as a last piece of trivia, Clancy's named for Clancy Brown.

Thanks very much for reading this - it's been a lot of fun to write! I hope to see you in the next one!

Steven Universe (c) Rebecca Sugar


End file.
